


you're beautiful (you've got it)

by bitsori



Category: AOA | Ace of Angels
Genre: Canon Compliant, Character Study, Egregious Use of Flashbacks, F/F, Sort Of, implied infidelity
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-28
Updated: 2019-12-28
Packaged: 2021-02-25 23:08:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,232
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21691837
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bitsori/pseuds/bitsori
Summary: Recently, Hyejeong feels like something has been amiss.
Relationships: Kim Seolhyun/Shin Hyejeong
Comments: 9
Kudos: 40





	you're beautiful (you've got it)

**Author's Note:**

  * For [pikasoos](https://archiveofourown.org/users/pikasoos/gifts).

> Firstly, Happy Holidays to my recipient! Thank you for giving me an excuse to write about AOA. ♥   
The prompt I chose to work with was: _Character study of one member of the group through their members' eyes_; I tried my best even though I'm not sure if something like this is what you had in mind when you were filling out the exchange form. ;; I hope you find it to your liking anyway!
> 
> **eta** this was originally a part of the [2019 allmyladies secret santa exchange](https://archiveofourown.org/collections/aml_ss19). (mod, wherever you are, i hope youre doing fine!! ;;)

\--

  
  
  


_ You should be a model, _ they told her. _ You’ve got the height for it. Your face isn’t as important if you’re a model – what matters is your proportions. _

Hyejeong used to wonder if she should be offended every time she heard this; sure they praise her body, but what do they mean by _ face isn’t as important? _ She’s never found herself ugly – average, if anything, even though the attention she used to receive from the opposite sex at least let her keep her confidence at a decent level – but comments like those tended to chip away at her fragile self assurance.

That aside, she heard the words plenty enough that she was eventually convinced to join a modelling pageant. She passed round after round after round, until she was finally cut and that was that. Or—that was supposed to be that, except someone had then approached her. “I’m a casting agent,” she was told. “You should audition for us.” 

After that, _ you should be a model _ turned into _ be an idol, _ and while at first Hyejeong wasn't really keen on the idea _ (you're nose just needs a little tweaking, _isn't really the compliment some people think it is), she's always liked singing so in the end she went for it.

She must have done something right because an entire decade later, she's still breaking her back as a seven year old veteran idol.

  
  
  


When Hyejeong first met Seolhyun, the latter looked so fresh-faced. She had round cheeks, button eyes and an innocent smile that Hyejeong assumed was what got her scouted. (Later, she found out it wasn't just that – Seolhyun was a dancer, but she also played the piano and that was one skill she had over Hyejeong. Back then, that kind of thing still mattered to their agency.)

She used to tell Mina that she thought Seolhyun was the cutest trainee, and Mina would nod, but Hyejeong could tell that Mina was mostly humoring her. Then again, her same-aged friend was casted for her face, so she had different priorities and insecurities, and better things to do than compare her looks with other trainees. (Hyejeong used to occasionally wish she could relate, but then Mina would cry on her shoulder, fingers bleeding from repeatedly plucking the fat strings of the bass guitar that the company had made her learn, and those wishes would dissipate. At least she only had to focus on becoming a better dancer, and her years as a cheerleader had given her ample headstart for that.)

“The two of you kinda look like,” Jimin told them once, in the middle of grueling dance practice.

Mina was slumped against Hyejeong's left side, while Seolhyun was seated on her right, both of them leaning against the walled mirror as they tried to catch their collective breaths.

“Us?” Mina asked, pointing at herself as she straightened up, clearly confused. And then she looked beside her, and easily realised who Jimin meant. “Oh.” She nodded. “Unnie is right.”

Hyejeong and Seolhyun exchanged looks, eyes roaming over each other's features; _ Seolhyun is too beautiful, _ Hyejeong had thought even then, and she knew Seolhyun would only further grow into her looks.

In that moment, she had wondered if people also encouraged Seolhyun to be a model—and then she decided that Seolhyun was definitely the type to have been told to be an idol instead, because she had the face for it.

And then Seolhyun had smiled at her, sweet and earnest, and then she shook her head. “Hyejeong-unnie is much too beautiful to be compared to me,” she said, and Hyejeong would protest, except she was caught off-guard by something in her chest, a tingly warmth that bloomed for reasons she couldn't fathom at the time.

_ Thank you _, she would have said even though she didn't really agree, but then their dance instructor started clapping her hands, announcing that break time was over and it was left at that.

  
  
  


“Hi unnie,” Seolhyun greets her with a friendly smile as she sits down across Hyejeong in the FNC lobby, setting down two cups of coffee on the table between them – one for Hyejeong, even though she hadn't asked. Seolhyun has always been the type to do nice things for others unprovoked.

“Thanks,” Hyejeong tells her, smiling as she wraps her hands around the cup.

“Have you seen Jimin-unnie?” Seolhyun asks in between gently blowing at her own drink.

Hyejeong shrugs; Seolhyun should know better than her because she's the one usually attached to their leader's hip. “Yuna-unnie and Chanmi are on their way, though,” she supplies. “Unnie texted me.”

It’s been a while since they were all called to the company office together. The last time was a couple of weeks ago, when management had laid out possible suggestions for the group's plans for the rest of the year. On the table was an offer from MNet to join some kind of reality competition featuring already established groups – none of them are particularly enthused about it, but Jimin, ever the rational leader pointed out that they could give themselves a rebirth through this show.

So everyone fell in line behind the idea, and now they’re supposed to have a meeting about how they're going to approach this competition.

“Oh, unnie's probably at the studio then,” Seolhyun muses; she sounds like she's talking more to herself than to Hyejeong, so Hyejeong doesn't respond and the two of them sit there in comfortable silence, drinking coffee and waiting to pass time until all the members are complete and it's time to walk into the assigned conference room where someone from management is undoubtedly waiting for them.

  
  
  


Five is an odd number – not just because it's literally an _ odd _number, but also in the way that it feels strange for there to only be five of them.

Hyejeong feels this more than ever when the other members arrive and the meeting begins. The moment Jimin comes, Seolhyun gravitates towards her, wheile Yuna and Chanmi arrive together, and when the manager shows up, the only chair in the conference room left is one next to herself.

It isn't that Hyejeong feels out of place because she's been with the four other women long enough to have formed a genuine relationship with each of them, but something still feels amiss.

She's been thinking a lot about the past recently, trying to explain the melancholy away.

When Youkyoung left, that had been unfortunate. She liked Youkyoung, but whatever brief bond they had formed during the months leading to debut had frayed easily as the group veered off completely from the band concept, and Youkyoung was increasingly left with a useless contract, and nothing to do. She had been a loss, but frankly, Hyejeong’s life had not changed much after the drummer left the group.

Choa’s departure had a bigger impact – she was one of the more popular members, and management had been troubled, unsure how to proceed for a while. Hyejeong knows that Jimin did her best to stop her, but in the end Choa got her way, and everybody had to adjust accordingly. It meant more singing lines for Hyejeong and she'd been wanting that for a while anyway.

But Mina leaving, _ well. _

Mina was – _ is _– her best friend and even though it was a decision that Mina thought about a lot, a decision that Hyejeong herself listened to her night after night contemplate, it still hit hard. AOA as six had been a surprisingly easy change – they were three pairs of tightly bound units, and they pushed through with the group’s chemistry better than ever. But as five? Without Mina? A part of Hyejeong feels lost.

“Are you feeling okay?” Seolhyun checks in with her once the meeting is over, and they file out of the conference room one after another. “You were looking out of it for the entire meeting.”

Hyejeong shouldn't be surprised that Seolhyun noticed, after all Seolhyun has always been sweetly observant – and yet, she is, which probably speaks volumes about the disconnect she's been experiencing lately.

“I’m fine!” She waves off the concern with a big smile anyway. “Just hungry,” she adds, because she's_ always _ hungry so it's a believable excuse.

“Jimin-unnie and I are eating out!” Seolhyun perks up. “Do you want to come with?”

For a moment, Hyejeong considers the invitation – but ultimately, she shakes her head. “Rain check,” she says. “When Yuna-unnie and Chanmi are also free.”

  
  
  


“It’s been a while since it was just the two of us like this, hasn't it?” Seolhyun had made this passing comment earlier in the lobby, and Hyejeong had to agree. They weren't really the type to spend time with each other outside of work, and maybe that's why Hyejeong has been feeling unsettled recently.

The two of them were never best friends, but there was a time when they Hyejeong would, at the very least, label them as close – not in the way they are now, where they know each other well because time has naturally bound them to each other, but _ actually _ close in the kind of way that they would seek out each other's companionship.

In some ways, their trainee years were simple ones. Even though the company made everything feel like a competition, especially when monthly evaluations were coming up, everyone also felt like they were standing on an even playing field and that made it easy for Hyejeong to feel genuinely connected to everyone.

And then they debuted, and she felt even closer to everyone – the competition was over and the girls who made it with her were going to be her sisters for life.

She and Seolhyun were marketed as double visuals, twin towers, and somehow this gave them something to share.

“Sorry you have to be compared with me,” Seolhyun used to tell her. “Unnie is so much more beautiful.”

Hyejeong would laugh, because that was a time when Seolhyun was pretty unaware of the effect she had on people – the agency wasn't, though, and they knew just how to capitalize on Seolhyun’s appeal. They tried with Hyejeong too – they booked both of them dramas, variety guestings—even made their most veteran group feature them in two different music videos.

In the end, Seolhyun took off, became the officially assigned center and Hyejeong was relegated to being The Tall One. She would have been bitter, but it was _ Seolhyun, _ and she always predicted that this was what would happen.

But by then it also wasn't even a competition anymore – it was Seolhyun at the head of the pack, then Jimin, and Choa, and the rest of them. Hyejeong had convinced herself floor a while that she was fine with this, but her best friend leaving her immediate side had triggered some kind of ache that she thought she'd long forgotten about.

  
  
  


Hyejeong feels restless at night so she decides to make something to eat. She prepares ramyeon and spicy rice cakes, and she knows she's going to bloat so bad the next morning, but lucky for her she doesn't have anything to do until the evening, when the group is set to meet and start preparation for the upcoming reality show they've signed on to do.

Except half an hour later, looking at the insane amount of food she prepared makes her feel just a little too much like a loser. So she pulls her phone out and goes through her contacts – she contemplates calling Mina and making her come over. This kind of late-night binging is the kind of thing they used to do together, typically with alcohol, when they still lived together. But she doesn't because the truth is that there's a part of her that's somewhat angry at her best friend for leaving. She'll get over it eventually, but it's enough reason for her to keep thumbing past Mina’s contact.

She ends up hovering over the call button next to her boyfriend's name, because, oh _ right, _ she has a boyfriend. Uihyun is sweet – he's good to her in a very earnest type of way that younger boyfriends can be, but there are times when the age gap between them feels a lot more than it truly is, and recently, with Hyejeong's restlessness, there have been more of those moments, than less. 

In the end, she reaches Seolhyun's name on her contacts list and she immediately hits ‘call.’ 

(The reality is that she always knew whose company she was craving anyway.)

  
  
  


There was a time when Hyejeong and Seolhyun were frequently left to practice, just the two of them by themselves. During the months leading up to debut, the group members who were a part of the band unit would spend a good chunk of the night in their small studio, practicing their instruments, so the rest of them were left perfecting choreography.

Chanmi was always a curve ahead of them, and she would always offer to help Hyejeong and Seolhyun out with their moves, but more often than not, they'd make her go back to the dorm

“Go back to the dorm and get sleep, you have school in the morning,” they'd prod her and at first she'd protest, and point out that Seolhyun does, as well, but in the end, fatigued from the hectic training schedule, she would cave and that's how, night after night, Seolhyun and Hyejeong ended up being left to their own devices.

It was one of these nights when they first kissed.

Surprisingly, it was Seolhyun who made the first move. Hyejeong was caught off-guard, mostly because she always assumed that if anyone was going to break, it was her – Seolhyun seemed too young, fresh, _ naïve, _ even, and Hyejeong had assumed that the fuzzy electricity – the chest flutters, and stomach flips – she felt whenever they touched was all on her part.

Apparently that wasn't the case, because Seolhyun was quite sure and steady when she leaned in, her lips persuasive as they coaxed Hyejeong's own to part and move against them.

They’ve been dancing for hours at that point, and therefore were gross and sticky with sweat; Neither of them felt anywhere near glamorous, and both of them were exhausted, but the kiss had felt like a shot of adrenaline to Hyejeong.

It was cautious and experimental, and it didn't last long; after they pulled away, they simply smiled at each other before Seolhyun moved to rest her head against Hyejeong's shoulder. 

Five minutes later, and they were back to ironing out the choreography they were learning.

(Not even twenty-four hours later and Hyejeong was confiding in Mina, whose eyes were wide with interest, asking for specific details and description.

“I’m curious too,” Mina had said, as if the assumption made was that Hyejeong and Seolhyun only did it to satisfy some kind of shallow curiosity. “I want to know how it feels too.”

Hyejeong laughed – even humored her with a chaste peck to the corner of her lips. She doesn't further explain the butterflies, no—the _ heat _ at the pit of her stomach that the kiss with Seolhyun had stirred.)

  
  
  


When Seolhyun gets to her apartment, she’s a little out of breath, as if she'd just run all the way up the building; it reminds Hyejeong of all the mean comments people still make about Seolhyun and her ex-boyfriend who Hyejeong would rather not name even in her head.

It’s not fair because like this, standing at her door, breathing ragged but with a smile that's shy but earnest, Hyejeong finds that Seolhyun is especially breathtaking.

“I made too much ramyeon tteokbokki,” Hyejeong informs the younger as she steps aside to let her in. “Thanks for coming.”

Seolhyun laughs. “Unnie, you don't call me often enough—I jumped at the opportunity.”

There's something eager in her tone that Hyejeong doesn't know what to make of, so she ignores it, just grinning and linking arms with the younger woman so she can lead her to the living room.

Seolhyun easily lights up at the sight of food even though none of it is anything special; they sit next to each other in front of the coffee table, and soon they're eating, elbows lightly brushing against each other.

The comfortable silence reminds Hyejeong once more of their trainee years, when the two of them used to have late night snacks together at the convenience store just down the street from the old FNC building. The two of them have always been the big eaters in the group, but unfortunately for them, they're also the ones who gain weight most easily. Hyejeong always assumed the silence from whenever they ate together back then was mostly because neither of them wanted to acknowledge how badly they were breaking their respective diets—funny how it still feels like that almost ten years later.

“Thank you for the meal,” Seolhyun announces after she's done with her share and she places her chopsticks down. She turns to Hyejeong and nudges the older. “Remember when we all still lived together?”

Hyejeong hums and nods in response, while Seolhyun lets out a soft giggle that gives Hyejeong even more reason to throw back to several years ago. Some things haven't changed, like the way Seolhyun expresses happiness.

“We used to get scolded so much from breaking our diets,” Hyejeong muses.

“I remember the morning we filmed the Get Out video—” Seolhyun laughs. “My face was so bloated! Choa-unnie helped me get the swelling down. But you—you ate as much ramyeon as me the night before, but you weren't as swollen!”

Hyejeong snorts. “Most days I looked worse though,” she points out, playfully nudging Seolhyun's shoulder with her own. “And you're so much more disciplined with dieting these days, compared to me.”

Seolhyun's expression falls a little. “I have to be.”

Hyejeong frowns and gives her another nudge. “You’re beautiful, either way.”

Seolhyun turns, a more relaxed expression on her features. “Unnie—” She smiles gently, looking like she wants to say something; and then she shakes her head, as if deciding to recalibrate the conversation. “So, why did you really invite me over tonight?”

“I had too much food,” Hyejeong answers readily.

“And you thought of me?” Seolhyun laughs.

“Yes?”

The younger woman hums, keeping her eyes on Hyejeong as if studying her carefully; it makes her feel self-conscious, and Hyejeong automatically averts her gaze. “I’ve just been thinking a lot about the past recently,” she finally admits.

“Me too,” Seolhyun agrees. “Unnie,” she continues, her tone softer now, and more hesitant. “You’ve been stressed more than usual recently, haven’t you?”

Again, Hyejeong shouldn’t be so astonished that Seolhyun can read her, because being observant has always been one of her defining traits; also possible is that Hyejeong herself been too distracted to hide the worry from her features. Still – Seolhyun’s words do something to her; they make her feel something that’s akin to pleasure and satisfaction that’s mixed with surprise. 

“Am I that obvious?” She jokes, chuckling.

Seolhyun quickly shakes her head. “I just pay attention, unnie,” she explains; and then lower, softer, “I just pay a lot of attention to you.”

  
  
  


Just like the first time (just like many of the times that had followed that first time, if Hyejeong is to be honest), it’s Seolhyun who moves to kiss her first. 

It’s been a while since they last did this. It’s been _ years, _ even, and there’s a small voice in the back of Hyejeong’s head that’s telling her there’s a reason for that, but she pushes it away. It isn’t even hard to do, because Seolhyun is easily the type to command your full attention without even trying.

Seolhyun’s lips are sweet, and her touch—her fingertips as they travel along the length of Hyejeong’s arm, are light yet electrifying. And then Seolhyun is nibbling at her lower lip, trying to gain her tongue some access into Hyejeong’s mouth, which she readily allows. 

“I missed you unnie,” Seolhyun whispers, and Hyejeong feels her cheeks heat up at the confession.

A hundred—no, a _ thousand _ thoughts run through her mind, and they’re all about the many different ways Seolhyun deserves better, and so much more than the public gives her credit for. Because Seolhyun is more than the image of her running up to her former boyfriend’s apartment in nothing but a one piece dress, much more than how the public treats her budding interest in activism and feminism, and definitely a lot more than her famed backside pose. Seolhyun is a lot of things that the public doesn’t know about, and to be frank, Seolhyun is a lot of things that Hyejeong herself can’t even begin to articulate even if she wants to.

“Me too,” she murmurs back, because right now, at least, as Seolhyun tries to help ease her stress and her troubled mind, the least Hyejeong can do is make this just as much about her, because Seolhyun deserves that much, and more.

Hyejeong’s fingers are nimble as they unbutton Seolhyun’s blouse, smiling when she finally manages to tug at the collar, which prompts Seolhyun to shrug the garment off. Their eyes meet, and Hyejeong’s breath hitches.

Seolhyun is also so much more than just _ beautiful _ and _ sexy, _ but Hyejeong is only human, and she can’t help but take a pause to appreciate the other woman for these simple qualities.

“Unnie,” Seolhyun whines softly, and she’s _ actually _ blushing, and it’s like Hyejeong is 20 again, and Seolhyun, 18. 

She chuckles, her hands now making their way down Seolhyun’s torso, settling on her hips, before her fingers start an attempt to unbutton the younger’s shorts. “You’re so beautiful,” she whispers, leaning in and kissing under Seolhyun’s ear. “You’re so beautiful, and good,” she adds, enjoying the way Seolhyun shivers under her touch.

“No,” Seolhyun protests, her own hands sliding up past the hem of Hyejeong’s shirt, fingers warm to touch. “You’ve always been the beautiful one, unnie, I hope you know this.”

  
  
  


“Do you feel any better now?” Seolhyun whispers.

They’re a pile of long limbs tangled together, illuminated only by the night lamp Hyejeong has placed near her bed; Hyejeong is staring up at her bedroom ceiling, and Seolhyun has her hand resting on Hyejeong’s stomach, while her chin is snugly fitted along the curve of Hyejeong’s shoulder. Seolhyun’s breath is warm and ticklish against Hyejeong’s neck, but she finds that she doesn’t mind at all.

“I feel…” Hyejeong trails off for a few seconds before letting a low chuckle escape her. “Hungry,” she supplies.

“Already? Again?!” Seolhyun huffs.

“Well, what we just did was pretty draining,” Hyejeong comments playfully, and Seolhyun simply burrows further into the crook of her neck as she giggles.

The truth: Hyejeong _ does _ feel better, at least in the moment. She _ does _ know that the melancholy she’s been feeling recently isn’t going to be fixed, just like that, after a night of undefined recklessness with Seolhyun. She wages, if anything, it just added more complications to her life – but it’s also nice, in a way. It’s a reminder than she and Seolhyun share something that’s only theirs, which in turn is a reminder that she has individualised relationships with each and every member of her group. They’re bonds that are varied in levels, of course, but they’re individual connections she’s made and strengthened through the years nevertheless, and she should remember never to overlook or downplay any of them.

With a quiet sigh, she pulls Seolhyun closer to her – she doesn’t know what happens to them tomorrow, and she doubts that this is an event that will repeat itself any time soon; in fact, it probably shouldn’t, all things considered, so she figures she might as well enjoy whatever she can of Seolhyun and her calming warmth.

“Thank you,” she whispers.

Seolhyun simply hums and smiles against her skin.

  
  
  


“Hi, unnie!” Seolhyun’s smile is lovely and excitable the next time they meet again at the agency. They’re having another meeting about that competition show – _ Queendom, _ Hyejeong recites in her head, because it has a name now. 

“Hey,” Hyejeong nods in greeting, her own smile bright and genuine.

Seolhyun has a cup of coffee for her again, just like before – just like _ always _ – but this time she doesn't hesitate to squeeze herself next to Hyejeong.

“Are you with Jimin-unnie?” Hyejeong asks, smiling gratefully when Seolhyun places her drink in front of her.

“I’m with you aren't I?” Seolhyun answers cheekily.

“No, I—” She stumbles over her own response, partly from laughter, but also partly because she flushes at the younger's words. “I just mean—did you arrive with unnie?”

“Ah, yeah, but we ran into Seunghyub-oppa, and she had something to discuss with him—” Seolhyun shrugs, and nudges her side. “And I saw you here, and I figured I’d keep you company.”

“Ah.” She smiles, and leans towards Seolhyun. “Thank you,” Hyejeong says, succinct bit filled with all the fondness and gratefulness she's feeling. It’s amazing how in times Seolhyun is to her needs – to all the members, despite her technically being ahead all of them in her career. “Thank you,” she repeats softly, because just saying it once didn't feel enough.

Seolhyun grins; and doesn't say a word, but she lifts her hand, knuckles very gently brushing Sunday Hyejeong's cheek – a simple gesture, but nevertheless it lets Hyejeong know that her feelings are understood.

  
  
  
  
  
  


fin.

**Author's Note:**

> I just want to say the news about Hyejeong's IRL breakup appeared on my TL like a day after I finished my first finished draft of this story, and I thought it was a bit funny that it kinda fit... with the story. That said, I hope she's happy and doing well -- just as I hope you all are doing great! Especially you, my recipient. I hope the holidays are treating you well, and may 2020 bring nothing but good things!


End file.
